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Before building anything, a solid foundation is always the first step.
Without a strong foundation, anything built will cause many problems. But get the foundation right, and the thing that is built will stand strong no matter what is thrown at it.
A sound check is the act of setting the foundation for your church’s entire audio situation on a Sunday. Every church should have this down for the glory of God and the excellence of its worship.
What is a Sound Check?
The most basic way to explain a sound check is this: it is a time to set solid gain structure and apply EQ and compression to each channel of audio. The idea is to have each singer or musician individually sing or play in order to specifically construct their sound to be pleasing to the ear using EQ and compression.
With proper gain, EQ, and compression in place, the musicians can freely adjust their in-ear monitors, and the sound engineer can adjust other mixer parameters with no worries.
What a Sound Check is NOT
Soundcheck is not the time to set up the soundboard scene. In other words, it is not a time to get things done that could have been done before the band, preacher, and others arrive. A proper sound check should also not take a long time.
It should be swift, efficient, and pleasant to work through. Consider how completing all the proper legwork ahead of time (like setting the scene, ensuring the routing is correct, etc.) will serve the team and the musicians. Think of ways you can value the time of all those involved. That way, when the musicians arrive, their time (and your own) is stewarded wisely and efficiently. And ultimately, this will provide a more locked-in worship service for your church.
Sound Check Heart Check
A sound check is so much more than just processing audio signals. Because the sound check is the first stage of preparation for everyone in the room on a Sunday, it is a time to set the tone for the entire team and for the entire day. This is the big moment where everything comes together and all the preparation the sound engineer has invested will pay off.
1. Be prepared to receive the band physically, mentally, and spiritually.
How can a sound engineer be prepared physically? Have the soundboard set up and all the routing done ahead of time. Again, this is wise stewardship of time that shows all involved that their time is valued. Also, be sure to arrive early. That way, everything is on and ready, and you are in the right mental headspace to receive everyone else with joy and low stress.
Mentally, know what's going to happen during the service (or throughout the entire day if there are multiple events). Know who is on the team for a given Sunday. Know their names and know their roles.
Spiritually, be eager to lead your church in worship, and see your role as vital in making that happen. Maybe even take time to pray for the job, the team, and the service leaders, and that humility and excellence will be present.
2. The audio engineer is the leader in this moment
Most leading on a Sunday is done by the teaching pastor or worship leader. Or if a church has a production team, a video director is leading. But in the moment of a sound check, the audio volunteer is the leader. Everyone is looking to him or her to know what to do next. So, this is a time of great stewardship and leadership.
Also keep in mind that the tone of the day is set here, and we’re not talking about the audio tone. The attitude a sound check leader brings will inevitably affect all those he or she is interacting with. Enter the morning grumpy and tired, and imagine how this will impact others. But come in gentile, loving, respectful, and excited, and the results will be obvious.
Interact with others. Tell them you’re excited to see what the Lord’s going to do through them today. Ask them about their family. After a sound check, tell the musicians how great they sounded and that you’re looking forward to the service. Be others-oriented.
Again, this is not just a sound check. It is setting the tone for the day.
So the heart is set, and the big picture is understood. How does a good sound check actually work, and what are some tips to make it even better?
How to Actually Do It
Again, a sound check is setting the gain structure, EQ, and compression of each channel individually to lay a foundation for the audio engineer to work with during rehearsal and the services itself. For obvious reasons, this post won’t dive into how to set proper gain structure or EQ, but we have good news for you.
We can fully equip you and your audio team to set gain structure, EQ, and compression like a pro. We can also equip you even far beyond this with skills needed to be an all-around proficient and excellent audio volunteer for your church. This is done through Churchfront’s Worship Ministry School. Here, we pour all our best efforts into equipping churches for excellent worship ministries.
Generally, it’s best to begin the sound check by starting with the worship leader microphone. This way, the audio volunteer can know what’s happening on the stage and can hear from the leader first and quickly. From here, the sound check can go in really any order, working channel to channel, setting gain, compression, EQ, etc. with each channel.
Remember the importance of asking each instrument to play at their loudest. If a vocalist is timid and feels awkward at this so early in a morning, ask a stronger vocalist to sing along with them or maybe one musician to play along with them.
That’s the general idea of a sound check itself! But remember, what makes a sound check effective is everything else this post has talked about, too. Anyone can conduct an okay sound check. Only healthy leaders who are servants conduct the best sound checks.
A Few Tips
As we wrap up, here are a few pro-tips for running an effective sound-check.
1. Address people by their names when sound checking
This one might seem obvious, but it can be easy to not address people by their names. It’s easy to say, “Hey, guitarist. Can I have your tone?” or “Hey, singer. Can you start singing?"
People have names, and this is a very personal and thoughtful way to connect with the band and set the tone for the day.
2. Use the talkback mic
If the tech booth is any distance away from the stage, whoever is leading the sound check will have to raise their voice constantly, and that can send the wrong message. Not only can the sound volunteer save their voice, but using a talkback mic can communicate with the band in a much more thoughtful and peaceful way.
When starting off a sound check, it can be helpful to make sure everyone can hear the audio volunteer well. Ask everyone to raise their hands if they can hear you, and those who can’t will inevitably look around and wonder why everyone has their hands up. Then that will get the signal across that they need to get their in-ears adjusted so that they’re not left out.
3. Survey the room
Remember that not everyone in the room is sitting at the tech booth. So it is important to step out of the booth and walk around. If the sound console offers an iPad app, mix with the iPad as you walk around the room.
4. Ensure there’s a clear hand-off to the worship leader
Make sure there's a clear handoff to the worship leader so that everyone knows who is now in charge of directing the musicians and conducting the rest of the rehearsal.
The sound check is done, and the sound engineer is no longer the leader, so a clear hand off can help transition everyone smoothly and efficiently.
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